United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon may be a native of South Korea, but his heart really resides in North Korea. The former South Korean foreign minister has demanded that the U.N. Security Council omit language that blames the North for the sinking of a South Korean warship. Nevertheless, President Lee Myung-bak of South Korea has yet to denounce the actions of his compatriot.
According to Yonhap News, “U.N. diplomats have been negotiating language in a document the (U.N. Security) Council plans to adopt on the March 26 sinking of the warship Cheonan, which left 46 sailors dead, after South Korea referred the case to the U.N. early last month for a rebuke of Pyongyang.”
Russia and China, traditional-backers of the North, have been a stumbling block to Seoul’s call for a strongly-worded statement targeted at condemning the North for the alleged torpedo attack and sending a clear warning against the regime should future provocations arise.
As reported by Yonhap, “the two nations have expressed reservations about the result of a multinational probe that found the North responsible. This backing is crucial for any Council move because they are veto-holding permanent members at the 15-nation global security body.”
Prospects for agreement seemed to occur when Russia consented to a statement issued at last week’s G-8/G-20 summit in Toronto. The statement indirectly names Pyongyang as accountable and urges the North to refrain from any assaults against the South.
Officials in Seoul claimed that the G-8 statement serves as a guide to negotiations at the U.N.
North Korea continues to deny any involvement with the sinking of the South Korean naval ship.
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